Hair thinning mechanism



March 31', 1936.- ANDls Q 2,035,632

HAIR THINNING MECHANISM Filed June 22, 1935v ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 31, 1936 HAIR THINNING MECHANISM Mathew Andis, Racine, Wis.

. Application June 22, 1933, Serial No. 677,068

2 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in hair thinning mechanisms.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a hair thinning mechanism which may be drawn through hair with a combing action and a predetermined portion of the hair cut progressively as the tool is being advanced, the hairs being preferably out individually or in exceedingly small groups of two or three hairs to be cut in any single operation of a shearing tooth as distinguished from the cutting of hair in clusters or looks, as is usually done when trimming out surplus hair with ordinary shears.

More particularly stated, objects of my invention are to provide successful means for the removal of hair uniformly and in definite proportions while moving the cutters at substantially uniform speed in combing operations; to provide a power driven hair thinning mechanism similar in its general construction to an ordinary hair clipper but with a shearing comb plate and vibratory cutter blade which have been modified to adapt them for cutting a desired proportion of the hair, leaving the remainder uncut during any given combing movement of the comb plate and cutter blade teeth through the hair; to provide a shearing comb plate with combing teeth which are relatively long and thin as compared with those of an ordinary hair clipper, and the extremities of which are adapted to be moved alongthe scalp in the same manner as the teeth of an ordinary comb, said teeth being also provided with narrow bearing faces adjacent the extremities of the teeth, the side margins of which faces form shearing edges for cooperation with the shearing teeth of the cutters; to provide vibratory cutter plates or blades having correspondingly thin teeth and substantially pointbearing shearing projections for cooperation with the shearing faces of the comb plate teeth, each along a line but little, if any, longer than the diameter of an individual hair of average coarseness; to provide such a hair thinning mechanism with power driven means for vibrating the cutter plate or blade at a substantially predetermined speed, whereby an operator may accurately predetermine the quantity of hair to be removed by regulating and keeping uniform the rate of advancement of the comb; and in genera-l to provide effective mechanisms for performing substantially uniform thinning operations in such a manner as to keep the results of such operations invisible under all subsequent combing conditions. i

In the drawing:

Figure l is a side elevation of my improved mechanism as it appears in operation.

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the working or shearing end of the tool showing the shearing comb plate, cutter blade, and associated parts in section on a plane extending between the shearing teeth.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the vibratory cutter blade.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the shearing comb plate.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary View of a pair of cooperative shearing teeth on the shearing comb plate and cutter blade respectively, and illustrating the manner in which an individual hair may be out without severing those adjacent thereto.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary enlarged plan view of the cutter blade as viewed from the inner side, i. e., the side opposing the shearing comb plate when the parts are assembled, a portion of the shearing comb plate being also illustrated in assembled relation to the cutter blade.

Like parts are identified by the same reference characters throughout the several views.

The handle Ill is similar to that of an ordinary hair clipper of a type in common use. This handle may be assumed to house an electrical motor of either the electromagnetic vibratory type or a rotary motor, receiving current through the conductors H. The type of motor is immaterial to the invention herein claimed, and it is therefore not illustrated. In accordance with ordinary practice, it may be assumed to be capae ble of laterally reciprocating a lever or vibratory arm 12 having a forked extremity in pressure engagement with a pair of lugs I 3 attached to a vibratory cutter blade M. This form of. connection for applying power to vibrate the cutter blade being well known, further illustration and description are deemed unnecessary.

The teeth 15 of the cutter blade are preferably relatively long and thin as compared with those of an ordinary vibratory cutter blade for a hair clipper. As best shown in Figure 6, the spaces between the teeth are of a width several times that of the teeth themselves, and as best shown in Figure 5, each tooth has a shearing projection I! substantially at its extremity and preferably in a central plane of the tooth transverse to the upper and lower faces of the blade. This projection extends in the direction of the shearing comb, plate teeth and is tapered for an approximately point-bearing contact therewith, although the end of the projection is flat over a small area and has a shearing side margin l 8, as best shown in Figure 6, which preferably has a length of approximately .010 to .015 of an inch.

These projections H not only have shearing margins 18, but their form is such as to adapt them for service as laterally moving comb teeth adapted to select individual hairs for shearing purposes while deflecting adjacent hair forwardly and rearwardly in the spaces between the comb teeth 24, whereby the deflected hair may be flexed over the bearing surfaces 26 of the teeth 24 without severance. In the rear of these hearing surfaces 26 both sets of teeth are provided with transversely extending clearance recesses within which the hair will not be severed.

But in order to obtain selection of individual hairs for severance it is important to employ laterally moving comb teeth H which engage only a minute fraction of the bearing surfaces 26, for if the dimensions of the bearing surfaces 26 were reduced in length as measured from the points of the teeth 24 rearwardly to correspond with the dimensions of the shearing projections H, but little hair would be out, since practically all of it would then be deflected from the extremely limited shearing zone. By making the bearing surfaces 28 of substantial length and having the shearing projections l1 engage these surfaces at a substantial distance to the rear of the front and rear ends of the bearing surfaces 26, a sufflcient number of uncut hairs will be in engagement with the bearing surfaces 26 to hold each individual hair from shifting toward the front or rear when directly engaged by a projection l1.

The shearing comb plate 20 is secured to the heel 2i of the casing or handle l0, preferably by screws 22. This shearing comb plate is similar to that of an ordinary hair clipper with the exception that its teeth 24 are comparatively long and thin and are widely spaced from each other as above described with reference to the teeth of the vibratory cutter blade. Near their outer ends the margins of the teeth 24 which oppose the shearing projections I! have elongated bearing surfaces 26, the side margins of which are adapted to serve as shearing margins in cooperation with the shearing margins of the projections IT on the cutter blade teeth.

While an ordinary hair clipper is usually pushed along the scalp with the cutter teeth operating in advance of the body of the comb plate, my improved hair thinning mechanism is reversed in position as indicated in Figure 1, whereby the teeth of the comb plate may be drawn through the hair with an ordinary combing action. No other function will be performed unless the cutter blade is vibrated.

By applying power to vibrate the cutter blade transversely of the line of movement of the comb, i. e., through the medium of the actuating arm l2 in a power driven mechanism, the individual hairs will be engaged between the shearing projections I? and the shearing margin of the hearing faces 26 of the shearing comb plate teeth and severed without severing other hair at either side thereof.

Preferably'the reciprocations of the'vibratory cutter blade will be short and the relation of the teeth ofsaid blade to the shearing comb plate teeth may be such that movement of the cutter blade in one direction will carry each of its teeth partially across the spaces between the vibratory comb plate teeth, and the movement in the other 2,085,632 g r Y direction may be only sufficient to carry the shearing projections II only partially across the bearing surfaces 26 of the associated shearing comb plate teeth.

While I preferably form the projections I1 I with such narrow extremities that only one hair will be engaged at a time by any given projection, it will, of course, be understood that by varying the length of the shearing edge [8 in the manufacture of the teeth, the number of individual hairs to be selected from among others and cut in a single stroke by a single tooth of the vibratory cutter blade may be correspondingly varied. The selection and cutting of one, two or three, or even more, hairs by any single tooth may be regarded as individual selection and cutting within the meaning hereof, as distinguished from the cutting of locks of hair in a manner to leave substantial gaps in the uncut hair such as may be visible unless the remaining hair is combed across such gaps.

I prefer to predetermine the degree of convergence of the front and rear faces of the projections H with reference to the desired length of the shearing edge. Thus, these projections may have adequate strength at their junction with the body portions of the teeth regardless of the extent to which they are tapered.

While it would be possible to fixedly mount the blade l4 upon the handle or casing If! and apply the power to vibrate the comb plate 29, I prefer to vibrate the blade l4 in order to avoid the discomfort that would result from a vibration of the teeth 24 in contact with the scalp, and in order to avoid the resistance and additional load that Would thus be imposed upon the motor.

I claim:

1. A hair thinning mechanism, including the combination of a comb plate and a vibratory cutter blade each having teeth provided with rounded ends, and mutually contacting. surfaces having shearing side margins extending rearwardly from said rounded ends, the teeth of the respective plates being spaced from each other at all other points and those of the cutter blade having their bearing portions formed upon the extremities of projections having convergent front and rear walls adapted to move with a vibratory combing action to separate individual hairs to be sheared whereby the hair to be out may be substantially individualized and sheared tact with the portions of the comb teeth having said shearing margins, said spacing projections having shearing side. margins of a length substantially corresponding to the diameter of an individual hair of maximum size and the teeth of the cutter blade being otherwise held by said spacing projections out of contact with the comb teeth.

MATHEW ANDIS. 

